Coffee and Coloring Playgroup: Little Bear Bread Recipe

Kuma-chan Pan (Little Bear Bread)
200g Bread Flour
10g Sugar
3g Salt
60g Water
60g Milk
10g Butter
1/2 Teaspoon Dry Yeast
1. Warm the milk to just below boiling in a heavy pan. Place the flour and salt into the bowl. Add the milk, lukewarm water, sugar, and yeast. Combine into a smooth dough.
2. Knead the butter into the bread and form a ball. Allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
3. (Just noting how much the dough should double via the picture)
4. Place the dough on a rolling mat. Cut off one gram and divide it into 20 pieces for the ears. Divide the rest of the dough into 10 pieces. Allow them to rest for 15 to 20 minutes on a damp tea towel.

5. Gently dampen the dough all around. Lightly press the two ears each onto the head. (The dough is easier to handle when slightly damp.)

6. Gather up the sides of a tea towel to form channels, placing the dough inside the channels, and allow it to rise until doubled in size once again.

7. If you don’t have a tea towel instead, place the dough on parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. (If you don’t have paper, spray it with water.) Cover loosely with plastic wrap as it rises. (For baking, you’ll be using the paper-lined cookie sheet)
8. For Brown Bears – Preheat the oven to 220 C, lower to 190 C and bake for 15-20 minutes.
For White Bears – Preheat the oven to 190 C, lower to 160 for the first 10 minutes, then lower 130 for the last 5-10 minutes.